A Certain Arranged Marriage
by BiGDeal
Summary: Mikoto's and Touma's families plan a family holiday together to discuss the mutual future of their mutual offspring. What is not counted on is Index's memory is reaching capacity and needs to be purged, involving everyone in the Magic side. What is not counted on is that Touma's ability has a flip side...
1. Chapter 1

Author's Notes... I've been spending way too much time perusing this website, reading the stories for the series that I've thoroughly enjoyed. Problem is, I'm also creating new stories for the series, plus trying to work on my own personal novels. Actually, I've been working on my second novel to be published and this website has consumed my evenings and lunches at work to the point where I've got to plow out some and get my system purged so that I can finsih off the four novels that are now back-logged; plus the five radio-controlled model airplanes to be finished and flown (my other major hobby/recreation activity.)

Well. it's time to purge myself and to plow out at least one chapter of my "Index/Railgun" story.

I've been asked when I started my own creations and it seems to go back to 1964 when I had long walks home (uphill, all the way) by myself. Star Trek really got things rolling with creating my own Star Trek stories, and it's now become a way of relaxation.

Anyway... time to get the brain-dump going.

"Touma! Touma! It hurts!"

Touma looked up from where he was preparing breakfast in the kitchen area an looked at his freeloader lying on his bed, clutching the cat to her chest.

"What hurts? Your tummy? Breakfast is almost ready."

"No," she whined. "it's my head. It feels as if it's about to explode from the inside."

Touma put the knife aside and turned the stove down under the pots. Wiping his hands on the dishcloth, he placed his hand on her forehead and looking at her face and eyes.

"Not running a fever and you're looking much as you usually do. Have you ever felt like this before."

"I...I think so, but I can't remember. It's as if all my memories are mushed together. I keep remembering all sorts of things and they keep pushing into each other, and nothing makes sense. Touma, I'm scared!", she wailed as tars vrept out from her eyes and ran down her face.

"OK, you just lie there and try to be quiet. I've got an idea but I need to find a certain someone..."

Touma tossed the cloth on the counter and walked to the door to the apartment. Opening the door, he looked up and down the outside walkway, focussing on the corners of the ceiling and floor, until he spotted a scrap of paper, tucked away near the door to his unit. Reaching up with his left hand, he gently pulled it away from the wall and brought it down in front of his face.

"Stiyl! I know that this is yours. Something going on with Index, and I need you here, NOW!"

Walking back into his unit, he slapped the paper down on the counter and went back to working on the breakfast thaqt he'd been working on, smiling over at Index as she knelt on the bed with the cat sitting on her lap.

By the time that breakfast was ready, there was a quiet knock on the door. Touma portioned everything out unto three plates and put them on the table and then walked over to the door and threw it open.

"Well, it took you long enough to open the door," said Stiyl as he tossed his cigarette on the walkway and swept past Touma, stopping only long enough to kick his shoes off before stepping in and going over to look down at Index for a moment and then sitting down beside her and gently lifting her head up so he could look in her eyes.

"She's complaining that her head hurts and her memories are all mushed together," chimed Touma as he placed the soup and chopsticks on the table. "Breakfast is ready if anyone wants it."

Stiyl stood up and extended his hand down to Index. "Come, chiyu. Let's sit down and eat our breakfasts. I'll get you something to help you for the next couple days but ... Touma, you may not trust me, but we need to talk and get her the help that she needs. Let's eat breakfast and I'll fill you in on what's happening and where we go from here."

Index got off of the bed and held on to Stiyl's hand as he walked her over to the table and got her seated. She looked blankly at the food as if she didn 't recognize it and then slowly reached for the bowl of miso soup and started sipping it, then reached for the chopsticks and started on the remainder of her breakfast, slowly chewing and savouring each bite.

Stiyl and Touma looked at each other then sat down in the other two chairs and started eating their respective breakfasts. Stiyl looked over at Touma's hardened expression and sighed.

"Yes, you're right. I've been keeping tabs on you and Index just in case this happened. That's why I put it there. It wouldn't activate until you picked it up and spoke my name, and that's all it does - take a message and alerts me. What's happened to Index is that she's reaching the limits of what memory capacity she has, what with those Grimoires taking up the rest. She's had an eventful year and had lots of memories. That's what's causing the problems now. I can give her a simple pain medication - it's actually children's Aspirin if you don't trust what I'll bring. What we need to do is to purge her memories, and that needs to be done soon. The more new memories, the more pain she'll be in."

Touma gripped the edge of the table. "Is that your answer? Just blow away her precious memories and return her to what she was when she was draped over my balcony railing a year ago, and just start all over again."

Stiyl looked down at his breakfast and continued eating while Touma started at him and glowerd.

"It's not something that I'd recommend if there was any other option that I can see. You could always use your Imagine Breaker and destroy the Grimoires and then she'd have all the room that she needs. Of course, there's really no way of knowing if Index herself would survive that. All that I'm asking is that we use the procedure and see what we can salvage of what defines the Index that you know. It's got to be done soon, within the next week if possible."

Touma looked down at this hands and then looked at Stiyl's face, blandly looking back at him.

"We've been invited to spend next week with my parents. I can't suddenly disappear on them and go off to get this done."

"No, you can't. I'll make the arrangements and we can do it on the quiet. However, to make this the easiest possible, we'll need to have the key person from her last regeneration. This will save the need for re-establishing everything...

"Komoe-sensei? You want Komoe-sensei there? I don't know what she's got planned for summer break."

"Can you ask her today and find out? I'm also going to need to know where you and your family are staying so that I can make all the arangements needed. Tell Komoe-sensei that she'll be well-recompensed for her time and all expenses will be covered. All she needs is herself and a packed suitcase for the time that you'll be there. Speaking of which, where is 'there'?"

Touma got up and pulled a letter off of the fridge and handed it to Stiyl. "Blue Heron Inn, Nago, Okinawa Prefecture."

Stiyl nodded and gently opened the letter fully, placed it on the table, stood up and pulled a playing card out of the inner pocket of his robe. Twisting it around and holding it by the corners, he held it over the letter and said "Snap!" A flash of light appeared from the card and he then put the card away.

Looking at Touma's amazed expression, Stiyl cocked an eyebrow and held up another card. Flipping it over so the back faced Touma. IT showed a large red apple. "Necessarius version of the iPhone... I've got the details and I'll have everything arranged, both if your Komoe-sensei comes and if she doesn't."

Touma face-palmed himself and muttered "Such Misfortune, to be done in by such a pun..."

Stiyl looked at his wrist, then at Touma. "You'd better hurry up or you'll be late for class. I'll take care of Index. She'll be here when you return. My word on that."

Touma looked at the clock and blanched. He gulped the last of the miso and tea, grabbed his books and jacket, slammed his feet into his shoes, and dashed through the door.


	2. Chapter 2

"Hey, Kami-chan! You'd better hurry up or you'll be in for real misfortune from Konoe-sensi!" came Motoharu's cheery jibe froim behind him as he closed the door to his apartment and almost ran into his friend and fellow classmate.

"Yeah, and she'll probably give you the same punishment just because you're dressed like a delinquent and have that easy, breezy attitude," as Touma ran to the nearby stairs and dashed down the steps.

Motoharu laughed and started jogging after his friend. Rounding the last landing, he leaped over the railing and landed in a traditinal ninja three-point stance before straightening up and waiting for Touma to catch up. They then turned and jogged down the street towards the bus stop, jumping on the bus just as the doors began to close.

Falling into the nearest available seats, they gasped until their breathing settled.

"OK, time to fess up. You were outside this morning looking for something, found it and then yelled at it before going back into your room. Did you and Index have a real set-to this morning instead of making breakfast," said Motoharu as he faced Touma.

"No, not that simple. Index is feeling sick and I needed ... to .. to contact a friend who knew her from before."

"So, you're standing on your walkway, holding a playing card and acting like it's a telephone or crystal ball or something?" Jibed his friend.

"You know bloody well what I was doing! You're a magician yourself!"

"SHHHHHHH! Don't say that out loud! You never know who might be listening in!" whispered Motoharu, going a pasty white and looking around to see if anyone was paying attention or studiously not paying attention. The bus was empty.

Touma leaned back and looked at the ceiling. "Index's memory is getting full and Stiyl says that the only thing that can be done is to reset it," he sighed.

"Yeah, the Collar program. Problem is the limited capacity that she's been left with, and you two have been piling memory upon memory since the first day that you two met." He chcuckled.

"Yeah, and you're making it sound like we've been doing 'this and that' when she's basically eating me out of house and home, and I have to defend her against every magic... er delinquent who's not an esper."

Motoharu laughed and held his side. "I'll tell Stiyl that the next time we meet. He'll laugh as well, once he stops pounding you into the ground and setting your ass on fire. Come to think of it, he IS a delinquent. At last, he is from this side of the fence."

Touma looked out the front of the bus and ignored his friend. "Collar program... memory capacity... I wonder if computer memory schemes can be applied. What do you think Motoharu?"

"Huh? Haven't you see when you try mixing the two?! My insides are still sore from helping you and Stiyl search for St. Peter's Cross... OOF!" The latter caused by Touma's elbox hitting his ribs.

"We're here, and we're going to have to run if we aren't going to be late," came from touma as he stood up and headed for the doors.

Stepping down from the bus, they turned and ran up the stairs beise the bus stop, heading for A Certain High School , well behind any other students using the stairs.

Finally reaching the top of the stairs, they leaned on their knees while they gathered their breath a bit and then started running for the school gates, now half-closed with a diminutive figure standing in the middle of the remaining opening with her hands on her hips. Putting a final push on, they dashed for the gate squeezing through the opening before it closed.

"Ah, the two that never learns their lessons, never has their homework done, and are always getting additional tutorials and time with their sensei..."

The two students in question were prostrated in from of her, hands rasied over their heads and begging for foregiveness.

"Oh all right, you can get up and get to class. No extra work if you can get there before me. No, go!"

Both students leaped to theri feet and took off at speeds that would have done credit to Olympic runners. One immediately, stopped and turned back.

"Touma, are you that eager for extra work? I can easily set you tasks that you can't possibly complete."

"No, sensei, but I do need to talk to you and ask you a quesiton. What are you doing for the next two weeks?"

Komoe-sensei blushed and looked at Touma coyly. "If I did not know you better, I would say that you were propositioning me. That won't change your scores - they've been in to the office a week ago."

Touma blanched and waved his hands in front of him in denial. "No, it's not that , Komoe-sensei. It's Index and her memory. Do you remember when she first appeared and you took us in when she was injured? She needs another session like that one and ... uh... Well, Sityl says that it would be easier if you were there ... and ... uh... He said that he'd cover all your expenses and ... uh..." He finally slowed down and stared at Komoe-sensei as if she fully understood what he was rattling on about.

She looked up at him, and started walking towards the school building with Touma walking behind. "You mean that she has to go into that trance state again, we call up the angel and the angel resets her? Correct? " Touma nodded. "I hope you aren't going to do this at my place again. I've barely gotten the roof repaired."

No, sensei. Stiyl thinks that we can do this while Index and I are visiting with my family in Nago, down in Okinawa. He said that he'll make all the necessary reservations, and just needs to know if you'll be coming. He also said that he'd pay you; suitably recompensed, he said."

"Oh, did he give you a telephone number where I can reach him to disucss this?"

"He's currently at my residence, looking after Index. " Touma patted his pockets, looking for his cell phone. "Such misfortune! I left my cell phone at home."

Komoe-sensei sighed. "I guess taht you don't remember your own cell number, becasue it's easier to have it be exchanged electronically rather than telling someone what it is? Yes, such misfortune. However, what sticking out of your breat pocket. Is that a playing card?"

Touma pulled the card out and looked at it. "That Stiyl! He tagged me with one of his runes! Look, just think of this as a cell phone of sorts and speak his name, Stiyl Magnus, and give him your cell number."

Komoe-sensei looked at Touma with the expression of "if this is a joke,... you'll have misfortune upon misfortune" and said "you'd better run to class before someone else sees you. I'll talk to this Stiyl Magnus and find out what's happening from him."

Holding the card in front of her, she said "Magnus Stiyl, call me at my cell number in one hour, Or does this rune work as a proper cellphone?" Sticking the card in her seater pc=ocket, she walked off towards her classroom and Touma, whistling a merry song.


End file.
